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Clinical Advisory Board

As a practice within the Cicero Therapies network of clinics, OTA clinicians and families have direct access to Cicero’s Clinical Advisory Board.

These esteemed individuals have made, and continue to make, significant contributions to their fields, as well as the communities, populations, and individuals they serve.

Rose Griffin

BCBA, CCC-SLP

Rose Griffin

Rose is a dually certified Speech‑Language Pathologist and Board Certified Behavior Analyst- an achievement held by fewer than 500 professionals worldwide. She is the founder of ABA Speech, a platform dedicated to empowering speech therapists, BCBAs, and RBTs through high‑quality professional development, collaborative training, and continuing education. With more than 20 years of experience supporting autistic learners, Rose has built her career around helping students find their voices and helping professionals work together effectively.

Through the ABA Speech Connection CEU Membership, consulting services, and a robust catalog of ASHA‑ and BACB‑approved courses, she provides practical, evidence‑based tools that strengthen interdisciplinary collaboration and improve communication outcomes. Rose is also the creator and host behind the ABA Speech social media presence and The ABA Speech Podcast, where she offers compassionate, accessible strategies for parents and professionals supporting autistic communicators. Her mission is rooted in the belief that all autistic individuals deserve a voice, and that meaningful progress happens when professionals unite around shared understanding and respect.

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Dr. Teresa A. May-Benson

ScD, OTR/L, FAOTA

Dr. Teresa A. May-Benson

Teresa is an expert occupational therapist renowned for her clinical research, mentoring and education related to related to sensory integration theory and intervention, praxis, and social competency. She is currently the owner/CEO of TMB Education, LLC and serves as President and practicing occupational therapist at OTR, Inc, a private occupational therapy practice specializing in sensory integration and social competency for children and adults across the lifespan, located near Philadelphia, PA.

Dr. May-Benson has a diverse background as a clinical practitioner, having worked in private and public-school settings as well as private practice. She has authored numerous book chapters and articles on praxis and sensory integration and completed her doctoral dissertation on ideational praxis. Teresa is an education and research faculty member at the SPIRAL Foundation. In her role of educator, she currently serves as adjunct faculty at Widener University and is past faculty at Tufts University and the University of Indianapolis. She has received the Virginia Scardinia Award of Excellence from AOTA for her work in ideational praxis and is the 2023 recipient of the AOTF A. Jean Ayres Award.

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Todd Root

President of Building Essential Skills Together

Todd Root

Todd is a strategic leader and writer in the autism and pediatric therapy space, known for championing more human‑centered, collaborative care. He writes widely read articles that help families navigate ABA therapy, understand early autism signs, and support autistic children at home and in the community. Todd serves in high‑level advisory and leadership roles, including as President of Building Essential Skills Together, a non-profit providing supported employment and job coaching to adults of all abilities, where he focuses on innovation and multidisciplinary collaboration. His work emphasizes designing therapy environments that feel warm, personal, and dignifying- spaces where families can exhale and children are celebrated for who they are.

His advocacy is deeply rooted in neurodiversity and identity‑affirming care. He regularly highlights the importance of seeing autistic individuals through a lens of strengths rather than deficits, pushing back against models that focus on “fixing” rather than understanding. Todd’s leadership has also extended into educational settings. His feature in Autism Digest highlights how he used his lived autistic experience and sensory understanding to improve environments for neurodivergent students, including coordinating the planting of 40 trees as a sensory‑friendly barrier at the Independence Academy of Indiana. Whether writing, consulting, or shaping new therapy spaces, Todd Root’s work centers on dignity, collaboration, and creating therapeutic environments where children and families feel truly seen.

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Dr. Kelsey Ruppel

Ph.D., BCBA, LBA

Dr. Kelsey Ruppel

Kelsey is a nationally respected behavior analyst and educator whose work centers on Practical Functional Assessment (PFA) and Skill‑Based Treatment (SBT), with a focus on assessing, treating, and preventing severe problem behavior in children with developmental disabilities and autism. She currently serves as the Executive Director and Chief Clinical Officer at FTF Behavioral Consulting, where she leads clinical innovation, provides international consultation, and supports organizations across schools, clinics, residential programs, and in‑home service models. Her career began as a teaching assistant in a specialized school and evolved to include roles as a special education teacher, BCBA, curriculum supervisor, and later as Associate Director of Dr. Greg Hanley’s Life Skills Clinic at Western New England University.

Dr. Ruppel’s academic and training background reflects her dual passions for global engagement and child development. She earned her Bachelor’s degree from Georgetown University’s School of Foreign Service, a Master’s in Special Education from Johns Hopkins University, and her Ph.D. in Behavior Analysis from Western New England University, where she trained under Dr. Hanley and contributed to research and clinical teaching. A published researcher and experienced educator, Dr. Ruppel has taught university‑level coursework, provided supervision across a range of service settings, and served as editorial assistant for the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis. Her leadership extends to national and international training efforts, including supporting the development of modern, compassionate ABA programs. Today, Dr. Ruppel continues to advance the field through consultation, teaching, and advocacy- championing ABA practices rooted in safety, dignity, trust, and meaningful outcomes for children and families.

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Dr. Carol Westby

Ph.D., CCC-SLP, BCS-CL, ASDCS

Dr. Teresa A. May-Benson

Carol is an internationally renowned speech‑language pathologist, researcher, and educator, widely recognized for her groundbreaking contributions to child language, play development, and culturally responsive practice. She is the developer of the celebrated Westby Symbolic Play Scale, a research‑based tool used worldwide to assess children’s play and social‑cognitive development. A Fellow of the American Speech‑Language‑Hearing Association (ASHA) and recipient of the Honors of ASHA, the Kleffner Lifetime Clinical Achievement Award, and multiple distinguished alumnus awards, Dr. Westby is recognized as one of the most influential voices in modern speech‑language pathology.

She is also Board‑Certified in Child Language and a certified Autism Spectrum Disorder Clinical Specialist (ASDCS). Dr. Westby holds an affiliated academic appointment in Communication Disorders at Brigham Young University. Her work spans a broad array of areas, including narrative development, theory of mind, trauma and ACEs, metacognition, language‑literacy connections, and assessment/intervention with culturally and linguistically diverse populations. She has published and presented nationally and internationally on these topics, influencing generations of clinicians and scholars.

With academic roots in English (BA, Geneva College) and Speech Pathology (MA/PhD, University of Iowa), Dr. Westby has dedicated her career to advancing evidence‑based, developmentally grounded, and culturally attuned approaches to supporting children’s communication. Her leadership, scholarship, and teaching continue to shape best practices in child language, literacy, and play‑based intervention across diverse settings worldwide.

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